RCR Visit, March 13, 2007

[Chuck]

Spring break, March 2007. What could be better than a road trip connected to GT-40 business? My son, Ryan, and I visited a Superformance dealer on our way to Detroit to visit RCR and check the progress on Chassis # 40. We were fortunate to see three SPF GT 40s. The comparison between the SPF GT 40 and the RCR GT 40 was most interesting. The disclaimer: this writer is a bit biased, having plunked down a not insignificant investment to get the RCR on order, but a couple of completely objective observations are in order:

1. We were told the ride height of the SPF GT 40 was two and one half inches. Feigning disbelief I got down on my hands and knees and looked under the car. A 2 x 4 laying on its side (1 ½” nominal) would easily clear, but upright (3 ½”) it would not. Two and a half inches from the concrete floor to the bottom of the transmission was indeed accurate. I could just imaging going over a speed bump and damaging that $10,000 tranny. Ugh. Now the RCR GT 40 has a road clearance of about four and a half inches That means you can drive the RCR on real roads and not just driveways. Chalk up a point for RCR.

2. We gave each car an official sit test. The SPF was comfortable. We fit well. No complaint. But the seats in the RCR, with their high density foam, were even more comfortable. Great lateral support. For this completely objective butt test, chalk up another point for RCR.

We dropped in on Fran with a two page list of questions. He spent more than an hour answering all our inquiries to our satisfication. Got lots of tips and ideas. We look forward to getting our hands on our Essex Wire reproduction (white with a red stripe) in the next month or two.







Fran and his crew have already made great progress. Suspension components were substantially complete. The engine will soon be ordered And check out those gorgeous gauges!.

[Dutton]

Chuck,

Interesting points regarding the SPF. Nobody likes speed bumps

Congrats on your order! Two quick points: (1) Right about the 10th week you're gonna go nuts in anticipation of the delivery and (2) now is a real good time to start investigating transport if you've not hauling the car yourself. There are several excellent companies out there (use the Forum search tool to learn a bit more).

As for the build, I'm sure you've already discovered the number of RCR build threads by owners who've been generous with their time and documented (for the rest of us) their route, challenges and surprises faced during the builds. This should make the assembly a wee bit easier.

That road trip has to be one of Ryans all-time favorites!

Best,

T.

[Big-Foot]

Good report Chuck! I'm 5 chassis' behind you!

[Mike Dozier]

I could be all wet...but I suspect most SPF customers are looking to get in and drive ASAP and have the extra cash to make it happen.....while most of Fran's customers are interested in participating in the build process....
and are more willing to exchange sweat equity for cash.

I'm not implying the SPF customers are "rich" and RCR are "poor"....I'll just say that Fran's done a great job of bringing an affordable kit to market
that meets the needs of many who could never afford an SPF.

MikeD

[Big-Foot]

Certainly not taking anything away from the SPF Turn-Key but...

Some of RCR's customers are also Custom Builders that can take these beautiful chassis all the way to a finished product to the customer's precise specifications.

[Peter Jankovskis]

The range of Fran's product line is also very impressive and growing all the time.